


Incompetence

by allixiler



Category: The Outer Worlds (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Mild Language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-17
Updated: 2020-10-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:27:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27056410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allixiler/pseuds/allixiler
Summary: He may not know what the word means, but Felix won't let his captain go a second thinking that she's incompetent.
Relationships: Felix Millstone/Reader, Female Captain/Felix Millstone, The Captain & Felix Millstone, The Captain/Felix Millstone
Kudos: 27





	Incompetence

“Welcome back, Captain.” ADA’s computer generated voice rang out in the entrance of The Unreliable. 

The captain groaned under her breath as she closed the airlock of the ship behind her. She said a silent thank you to whoever was listening that she made it back in one piece and in relatively good health. She was a little banged up, but nothing a shot of adreno wouldn’t fix. It was her duty to save Halcyon...or at least get it going in the right direction. She knew this very well. Dr. Welles wouldn’t have woken her up from a 70 year hibernation if he didn’t think she had what it took. But this last mission had been a rough one. 

Initially, she wasn’t sure if she could afford to spend time on this mission. It was out of the way and where they would have to go was deep into the Monarch wilderness. However, Nyoka had been so hesitant to ask for the captain’s help which showed her how desperate she actually was. This was even more obvious considering that Nyoka hadn’t known the captain very long to be asking for personal favors. It was important to her to visit Hayes’ grave and try to find the rest of her old hunting squad. So, the captain figured it was worth the trip. She knew how important closure could be.

The captain, Nyoka, and Ellie had hiked a ways into Monarch and into the old cave that Nyoka and her previous team had made into a base camp. Sadly, they only found the dead bodies of her beloved friends and ended up putting them to rest once the rogue mantiqueen was taken care of. It was hard on Nyoka especially, but it even got the captain thinking about the current situation. Here she was, a Hope colonist who was thrown into a space pod by some crazed scientist for all she knew with the task of saving an entire colony. She had been asleep for the last 70 years and now she was supposed to hop between planets to save them from turmoil? It was insanity. She was only human and could only handle so much. She was thankful that she had been able to assemble a team along the way.

She met Parvati first. It was just the two of them for awhile. She was the first friendly face the captain had met on her journey. She saved Parvati from the destruction of Edgewater and their crooked mayor. The captain desperately needed her engineering skills as well as a sharp mind to keep the ship in order. She was nice company and always willing to lend a hand. She never let her forget how grateful she was.

Vicar Max was a challenge in the beginning. She didn’t like the fact that this esteemed priest had asked her for a favor the moment she met him. She wasn’t sure if his spiritual counseling skills would be beneficial to the team. After all, she needed a gang of intelligence and physical combat skills. Max proved himself through his computer hacking skills which wasn’t something she would’ve expected from a vicar. He grew on her quickly and she was happy to have him around.

SAM was actually the last person she recruited into your party. Honestly if she hadn’t taken the time to deeply search through the late Alex Hawthorne’s spaceship, she never would’ve noticed him. He was stashed away in one of the closets upstairs, so at first she thought he was just used for parts. Once she took the time to get him fixed, he was up and off to work. She didn’t really ask him to be a part of the crew. He sort of just got started on his own. He didn’t say much, but he was a good fighter and kept things spiffy and clean.

At the time she met Ellie, she was in desperate need of a medic. She could only do so much, so having a doctor around was helpful. Ellie had the most secretive background of everybody. She came from one of the wealthiest families in Byzantium and really could’ve had it made. The captain commended her for living the life she wanted to live, even if it meant risking having her own flesh and blood disowning her. She was often the one the captain turned to when she needed to talk, because Ellie would tell it to her straight. She never left a conversation with Ellie still wondering how to handle something.

The captain tended to think that she saved Nyoka’s life. She was a drunk living in Monarch. She had been burned one too many times by the evil things of the world. Captain never judged her for how she chose to cope with her hurt and losses. She had a fiery passion for helping others and bettering the colony. The captain admired her worth ethic. It was her family and friends above all else. She was very loyal to those she cared about. She rarely questioned her captain’s decision making and always backed her up through it all.

Then there was Felix. Oh, wow. When she first met him on Groundbreaker, it was the first time she had stopped in weeks. He had been standing near the landing pad, arguing away with one of the mardets about something sketchy he had done. She had taken the time to stop to speak to him. She immediately noted that he wasn’t shy when it came to a fight. He wasn’t shy when it came to violence. Truthfully, Felix had kind of brushed her off at first. He didn’t seem very interested in joining The Unreliable. So, she moved on.

She completed a few favors for Groundbreaker’s main engineer Junlei Tennyson. Once the business was settled there, the captain decided it was time to set flight. As she was leaving, she saw Felix standing by the entrance of The Unreliable. She was surprised to see him, considering he hadn’t seemed too impressed by her before. He complimented the ship, claiming that she needed him to join her team.

She already knew she was going to say yes. However, she wasn’t going to be seen as a pushover. Because she wasn’t. He was delighted that she had given him a chance. He read his list (literally) of reasons as of to why she should hire him. She was amused by him. He interested her. So of course she hired him on the spot.

He was like a kid on Christmas when he set foot on The Unreliable. She later learned that he had never been on a real spaceship. As a matter of fact, Felix had never even left Groundbreaker before. He was born and somewhat raised on Groundbreaker, living in the Back Bays all his life. It was all he knew. He was going to see space for the first time and get to explore new planets. She was his golden ticket to a more exciting life.

It wasn’t long after Felix joined that she grew closer to him. She felt wrong for awhile for being so drawn to him. She was his “boss” as he always called her as well as his captain. But at the same time, she was really just his friend that happened to be in command of the ship he now lived on. They were the only real night owls, so they spent a lot of time into the late night hours just chatting. Getting to know each other over a bottle of spectrum vodka and strengthening a personal connection. Soon enough, they were sort of the equivalent of a modern day couple.

The rest of the crew sensed that something was up, but they had yet to officially say anything. The crew didn’t mind. They all agreed that she deserved someone loyal like Felix. They knew she would never favor him over anybody else, because she was always fair.

So, here she’s was now. She was just plain exhausted and needed some time to wind down. She had originally planned on leaving Monarch and docking at Groundbreaker to get some drinks before turning in. However, the mission had taken longer than expected, so she decided to stay in Stellar Bay and hit up Groundbreaker in the morning to give everybody a day off. They needed it. She entered the control room to deactivate ADA:

“ADA, we’ll head for Groundbreaker in the morning. You can shut down for the night.” She ordered the PC system.

“Docked in Stellar Bay and shutting down, Captain.” She replied before her screen went black.

It was ironic that she always had to tell ADA when to turn off. She couldn’t really turn off, because then the whole ship would go dark.

The captain felt relieved to have made it back safely. For there were a few moments where she had her doubts. She left the control room and climbed the stairs. Everybody was sitting around the table, Nyoka and Ellie looking especially tired. The captain’s eyes flicked over to Felix who was fiddling with the tossball that he always kept in his pocket. He flashed his girlfriend a grin, however it faded into a sympathetic frown when he noted how drained she looked. Everybody else looked at her upon noticing her standing in front of them;

“Hey, guys. Change of plans. We’ll leave in the morning for Groundbreaker. It’s late and quite honestly, I don’t feel like traveling,” She admitted; “Take it easy tonight. Tomorrow will be our off day to piddle around Groundbreaker. Get some rest.” 

Everybody agreed happily to a day off and dispersed into their respective sleeping quarters. She rubbed her eyes to keep herself from getting too tired. She still had a few things she needed to do, so she wouldn’t be turning in just yet. She made sure to turn SAM off for the evening. SAM could power down on his own, but he often had the tendency to roam the ship freely during the night. Parvati had been spooked one too many times by SAM walking into her room unannounced.

She felt a hand on her shoulder as she went to approach the stairs to go back down. She looked up to meet Nyoka’s gaze. She had a certain gleam in her eyes past the fog of sleeplessness;

“Thanks for today. I really appreciate it, Captain,” She gratefully said; “I can rest easy now knowing they’re at peace.”

“Of course, Nyoka. Anything for you,” The captain returned with a smile; “Get some sleep. ADA will wake us in the morning.” 

Nyoka returned to her room and the captain went back downstairs to the her room. Truthfully, she wouldn’t be able to sleep even if she didn’t have work to do. She had too much on her mind. She sat at the long desk across from the bed, thumbing through files and papers that Alex had left behind. He had left piles and piles of reports about all the planets in the colony. She could just ask ADA, but these were personal notes and maps. They were useful, but detailed. It took serious time to go through them. Soon after she had sat down, she heard a voice from behind her;

“Hey, Boss,” Felix said gently tapping on the doorway; “You got time for a nightcap?”

She turned to see him standing there with two cups wrapped in one of his hands. She felt a warmth creep over her at the sight of him. She needed someone to talk to.

“Always,” She said accepting his request to enter. A goofy smile appeared on his face as he entered and he handed her one of the cups. She thanked him before scolding him; “I told you that you don’t have to call me boss.”

He shrugged as he took the chair adjacent to her for himself;

“It’s got a nice ring to it. I save Captain for special occasions.” He said sipping whatever was in the cups.

Speaking of, she peered down into the ceramic mug to see a familiar purplish liquid bouncing back your reflection. She smiled softly as she raised the rim to her lips, letting the sweet liquid grace over her tastebuds.

“I hope you don’t mind sharing the portion. I know we usually get our own but we’re low on purpleberry juice so I split a bottle between us.” He said sliding down into his chair slightly and entwining one of his legs with hers.

“Oh, that’s totally fine. I’ll be sure to pick some up tomorrow,” She stated, taking another sip; “How were things here today?”

Felix rolled his head from side to side in an attempt to work out any kinks. He laughed shortly;

“Ah, the usual. SAM cleaned every square inch of the ship. Parvati spent all day writing a message to Junlei. Max had his nose in a book all day,” He explained; “I, on the other hand, was actually productive.”

He reached into his pocket, pulling out a carton of cigarettes that he picked up on Scylla. They weren’t his favorite Spacer’s Choice brand of smokes, but they would do. He offered her one first, lighting it for her, and then picking one for himself. She raised a brow at his previous statement, hiding her unconvinced smirk behind the cup;

“Is that so?” She asked for elaboration.

“Yeah! I organized all my tossball cards from my favorite to least favorite. It took me almost all day!” He clamored.

She laughed heartedly. Only Felix Millstone would consider that to be productive. However, considering he didn’t get into any actual trouble, she would take that any day. She watched as he brought the cigarette to his lips that were upturned into an amused smile.

“Well, I’m glad you have your priorities straight.” She said sarcastically.

His eyes brightened;

“Hey! At least I didn’t get in a fight with ADA this time. I minded my business,” He defended; “But enough about me. How did it go with Nyoka and Ellie? You ladies seemed extra worn out.”

She sighed, her smile disappearing from her face. His heart did a quick pang in his chest when he saw her demeanor change so quickly. He had wanted to go with her on Nyoka’s detour mission. The captain had told him no, considering he had just gone on the previous one. He always felt that he could save her some grief if he went along on difficult missions. 

“It was long. It was hard...mentally and physically. Especially for Nyoka. She was expecting to find at least one of them alive. They were all dead.” She said recalling the overrun cave.

Felix winced at the thought. He had grown up in the Back Bays of Groundbreaker. He had seen his fair share of people get killed, but nobody he really cared about. She took a long drag of her cigarette. Letting the smoke fill her lungs completely.

“Mauraders?” Felix asked referring to how they had died.

She shook her head as she released the puff from her chest through her nose.

“We don’t know for sure. We think it was mantipillars. Nyoka seemed sure that there was no way mauraders could’ve found that cave.” She explained.

She had agreed with Nyoka’s theory. It had taken some serious navigation to get there and even with Nyoka’s help she still got turned around. She took another sip of her juice, hoping that maybe she’d get sleepy soon. She didn’t want to put her problems onto Felix, because that wasn’t his burden to bear. She knew that he enjoyed listening to her. He cared about her a lot and he was thrilled to hear about her thoughts...even if he didn’t get it. He was more than willing to help where he could.

“How do you feel about it? Now that you’re back and the job is done?” He questioned, leaning forward to be closer to her.

She looked down into her cup, swirling the juice around the sides and letting it splash back into the center. She didn’t want to look at him. That’s when he could really see through her. She felt so vulnerable.

“I feel lost,” She admitted; “I don’t know what I’m doing, Felix.” 

He furrowed his brows, cradling his cup in both his hands with his cigarette between his index and middle finger;

“Do any of us really know what we’re doing? I thought you told us to take things step by step?” He asked.

“Well, yeah. I still believe that, but I mean me personally. I’ve been tasked with saving Halcyon from completely falling apart by some man that could be a total fraud for all I know. I feel so incompetent.” She confessed.

A blank stare crossed Felix’s face. Law bless him. He didn’t have the best range of vocabulary.

“I feel like I’m not good at anything I do.” She said defining the word she had just said. 

Felix looked shocked at her words. That was crazy. She had been busting it the last several months trying to accomplish her bestowed goal. He had seen her at her best and at her worst. She took everything in stride and gave everything her best shot. She was friendly and kind to those who had good intentions and stone cold to those who took advantage of innocent people. She was a blend of warm and tough. She was the perfect person in his eyes.

“Are you kidding? [Y/N], you’re not at all incontinent.” He said using the wrong word. 

She snorted at his horribly wrong use of the word. If only Felix knew what the word he had just said actually meant.

“Incompetent.” She corrected. 

He chuckled. She could be such a smart ass.

“Right. Anyways, you’re great at what you do. I’ve seen it myself.” He proclaimed. 

Her gazed averted downwards again, not feeling convinced.

“You’re just saying that because you like me.” She said half joking.

“Well, you’re not wrong. I do like you. A lot. But I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it.” He said truthfully; “Baby, you’re one of the damn finest captains to ever run a ship.”

She finally looked at him, taking the cigarette from her lips;

“This isn’t even my ship, Felix. It was a total accident that I ended up on this thing.” She argued. 

“It is your ship,” He retorted; “You were assigned to it. You made this ship your own. You gathered your own crew and your own life here. So, you’re wrong. This is your ship.” 

He had a point. She did take over the ship without a second thought. She improvised. She was quick thinking on her feet. She overcame. Isn’t that what captains are supposed to do? She finished off her cigarette and the last of her juice. He had gotten through to her enough to make her feel more comfortable. The whole 70 year hibernation had done a number on her emotions.

“It’s my ship,” she repeated; “I am the captain.” 

He smiled proudly;

“Damn right you are. I’m proud of you. I’m glad to be your right-hand man.” He beamed.

He kissed the back of her hand, guiding her out of her chair. He disposed of his own cigarette and he tore her away from the desk. Soon enough, she was in bed, curled up next to him. His arm was wrapped around her, keeping her warm and comfortable. He kissed her temple, rubbing her back gently. He wanted her to get a good night of sleep so she could enjoy their day off tomorrow.

“Goodnight, Felix.” She whispered just before falling asleep.

He rested his chin on her head, watching the stars outside the observatory window and into the endless space.

“Night, Captain.”


End file.
